Mitch Calvert
What a way to start the New Year.
The Fort Frances Canadians Midget ‘AA’ hockey squad hosted a pair of games over weekend, beating the West Kildonan Collegiate Wolverines (Winnipeg) 5-4 on Saturday in Emo before dumping Grand Rapids 8-2 in a Sunday matinee at the Ice for Kids Arena here.
Canadians’ assistant coach Marcel Pagee said the team came to play, and that the effort level was in stark contrast to a poor effort the Canadians put forth at a tournament in Blaine, Mn. just after Christmas.
“We had a pretty solid week of practice leading into the weekend, and the boys finally came to the rink and showed up,” Pagee stressed.
“I think it was a bit of the Christmas slump down in Blaine,” he added. “The kids get in a rut with no school, no homework, and that lazy mentality carried over to practice and the games.
“Had we played like we did this past weekend, we would’ve won Blaine tournament, and I say that knowing what we are capable of.”
The Canadians opened the scoring against West Kildonan in the first period, getting a short-handed goal from Ryan Lundy, but the visiting Wolverines took a 2-1 lead into the intermission.
The home side then exploded in the second, getting goals from Cole Calder, Brett Bodnarchuk, and Tyson McLean to lead 4-2 after 40 minutes.
The Wolverines narrowed the gap to one to open the third, but Jeff Gustafson then fired home the eventual game-winner.
The Wolverines added one more later to round out the scoring.
“It was a little bit of a physical game and it got kind of ugly there, but the boys held on for a win anyhow,” Pagee noted. “[Goalie] Wes [Brown] played well, we moved the puck around nicely, and our power play finally came around.
“And we got a short-handed goal there, too, so special teams came up big,” he added.
The Canadians came out with much the same effort Sunday, and all lines were firing with eight different players finding the scoresheet.
Gustafson, Ryder Woolsey, Brad McDonald, Brandon Sinclair, Jeff Cridland, D.J. Bombay, Jordan Sinclair, and Lundy all netted singles.
“Guys were hungry, ready to play, and I was able to roll all four lines, which isn’t something you’re necessarily able to do all the time,” Pagee noted. “The defencemen put on their working boots and went to work.”
Pagee and long-time head coach Dave Egan weren’t quite sure what kind of team they’d have with a lot of rookies making up the roster, but Pagee said the squad has come a long way since the early part of the season.
“Very pleasantly surprised,” Pagee enthused. “We have a whole lot of 15-year-olds, and we might have maybe five returnees, so everyone else is brand new.
“Some played ‘A’ or ‘AA’ hockey, and they had to get used to brand new systems, penalty kill, power play, breakouts, and learning their specific job and being responsible on the ice,” he stressed.
“We are way ahead of where we thought we’d be as a team at this point in the season, so we’ll see what the New Year holds,” Pagee said.
The Canadians are off to Wayzata for a tournament this weekend, where they’ll look to exact revenge on the host team after Wayzata beat the Canadians in the final of the Gus Lindberg Memorial tournament here in early December.
